Sharp Posts Rise in Quarterly Profit, Trims Outlook

A worker prepares a display of Sharp flat panel televisions for the 2009 International Consumer Electronics Show (CES) at the Las Vegas Convention Center in Las Vegas, Nevada, January 7, 2009. Photo: Reuters

Sharp Corp reported a 44 percent rise in quarterly earnings, beating analysts' expectations, but cut its full year forecast as shriveling domestic television sales offset growing demand for smartphones and tablets.

July-September operating profit was 30.1 billion yen compared with 20.9 billion yen in the same period the previous year.

The electronics firm cut its operating profit forecast for the full year to March 2012 to 85 billion yen from 97 billion yen, compared with market expectations of a 71 billion yen profit, based on the average estimate by 22 analysts polled by Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.

That compares with a 78.9 billion yen operating profit for the year to March 2011.

As part of a strategy aimed at tapping the booming tablet market, Sharp said in June it would switch most production at its Kameyama liquid-crystal display (LCD) panel plant in western Japan to smaller panels used in popular devices such as Apple's iPad.

Sharp's shares have fallen about 17 percent since April 1 in a broader market down 10 percent.